1) You Need to Negotiate Your Salary and Compensation Package

The most important advice women need regarding salary negotiation is that it is an acceptable and expected part of the hiring process. All good hiring managers keep some money out of the initial offer to ensure s/he can negotiate with the person they want to bring on board. When you accept what is initially offered then you have lost some of the money you could have been paid. Start the process with a statement of excitement for the opportunity but disappointment for the salary. Ask to walk through the entire compensation package before you start the back and forth of numbers. Finding out that you get only two weeks vacation and pay the full cost of your health insurance after you settle on a salary causes for some very awkward reopening of negotiations. It is much better to see the full picture before the active negotiation.

2) The Value of the Job is NOT Tied to Your Previous Salary

The second most important advice is not to provide your salary history to potential new employers. Simply keep that field blank when filling out an application. The job has a market value and that market value has nothing to do with what you earned before. If you are like most women you are underpaid in your current job thus adding 10% – 15% to your current underpaid salary to figure out the right pay level at your next job will continue your path of being underpaid. Yet, it is the easiest way that most companies figure out what to offer future employees. Remember you beat out a bunch of other candidates to get the job. You have been deemed the best person for the job. Don’t you deserve to be paid like the best if you are offered the job?

3) Salary Research is Readily Accessible

When researching the salary range for you current or next job do not get stuck on the title. Your company may use some funky trendy name for your job but you need to use more generic descriptors for your research. For example, long ago I was an inside sales representative for a small start-up and the company wanted to give me the title TelEvangelist for telemarketing/evangelist. I would find nothing on such a title but would find tons of information for inside sales representative. Definitely research the salary ranges on various salary research sites such as Salary.com, Glassdoor.com, and Payscale.com. No one resource is perfect so you want to use a few to find a consensus. Other great resources are trade associations for the industry or the job. Many have salary information available either on their site or by requesting it.

4) Never Provide Your Desired Salary

Now that you have done the research you know what the job should pay and you want that amount. You will find you are asked this question throughout the interview process but never supply it until you have a job offer and are actively negotiating. There may be a field on the application for desired salary. Keep it blank. You may be asked to provide it in your cover letter. Do not reference it. You may be asked in the interviews. Good and acceptable responses include “a competitive salary”, “it’s negotiable”, or the classic answer a question with a question “what is the budgeted salary for the job”.

You will be well on your way to earning more as you incorporate these four bits of advice for women and salary negotiation.

Note from Anna: I also asked Katie this one last question that I get all the time.

Anna: One question I have for you since this is your specialty, what do you do if they absolutely require your desired salary and won’t move further without that salary?

Katie: I haven’t found that to be the case. Typically, they will couch it as “I don’t want to waste your time so can you tell us what you are looking to make.” Answering in a professional manner that salary is negotiable or please share the salary range approved for the job will handle the situation 99% of the time. If you are unlucky enough to be in the 1% that just won’t budge then make sure you have done your research before applying for the job and know the market value for the job. Give a range such as “Based on my research the job should pay in the $60K – $70K range. Or low $100Ks.” Make that number higher than your actual goal because whatever number you state will become the ceiling of the negotiation.

What have you learned by negotiating your own salary?

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Anna Runyan has been helping women get their careers unstuck since 2008. She is known for “The Love Your Career Formula” which helps women find new careers they LOVE in 90 days or less and “The Corporate Rescue Plan” which helps women ditch their day jobs and start profitable, freedom-based online businesses in 90 days. Make sure you sign up for her Free ‘CHEAT SHEET’– 7 proven steps to get out of a job you hate and into a career you love.